\n Munich\/Bucharest\/Stockholm. The BMW Art Car World
\n Tour continues its global journey with two significant new chapters: a
\n historic debut in Romania at RAD Art Fair (23\u201326 April), marking the
\n first-ever presentation of Alexander Calder’s pioneering BMW Art Car
\n #1 (1975) in the country, and a fifth consecutive partnership with
\n Market Art Fair in Stockholm (24\u201326 April), featuring the BMW Art Car
\n #20 by Julie Mehretu. With more than 55 stops already completed since
\n March 2025, these presentations represent pivotal moments in the
\n largest exhibition project ever undertaken for the BMW Art Car Collection.<\/p>\n
\n RAD Art Fair 2026: Building Romania’s Contemporary Art
\n Future.\u00a0
In its fourth edition, RAD Art Fair (23\u201326
\n April) has evolved into a vital collaborative platform dedicated to
\n strengthening Romania’s contemporary art scene and amplifying the
\n visibility of local artists and galleries on the international stage.
\n In 2026, RAD continues to expand its international reach while
\n refining its curatorial vision through a more focused, intentional
\n approach to programming. Strengthened global partnerships and a
\n growing international audience are positioning Bucharest as an active
\n and influential node in the global contemporary art conversation.<\/p>\n
Bucharest honours the BMW Art Car Collection’s origins with
\n Alexander Calder’s BMW Art Car \u2013 the very first BMW
\n Art Car \u2013 making its Romanian debut at the fair. Alexander
\n Calder\u2019s BMW 3.0 CSL
\n (1975) laid the foundation for the iconic BMW Art Car
\n Collection when French racing driver and art dealer Herv\u00e9 Poulain,
\n together with then BMW Head of Motorsport Jochen Neerpasch, asked his
\n artist friend Calder to paint a car. The completely reimagined 3.0 CSL
\n patterned in red, yellow, blue, and white went on to compete in the 24
\n Hours of Le Mans in 1975 and became a crowd favourite. The car will
\n complement RAD Sculpture Park, open as a continuation of the Art Fair
\n until 15 May, at the Hotel Caro Gardens in Bucharest.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember our first talk about the fair with the BMW team 4 years
\n ago, when the project was just a plan. I explained how important it is
\n to have a partner like BMW, who is such a great supporter of cultural
\n projects. Since then, we have been working together in an effort to
\n bring Romanian culture scene into a global focus. After just three
\n years, we are proud to be the venue for the first visit of a BMW Art
\n Car in Romania. Considering the connection that Alexander Calder and
\n Constantin Brancusi had through the years, it is very fitting that we
\n have this BMW Art Car here, while promoting the Romanian culture\u201d,
\n Catinca Tabacaru, RAD Art Fair.<\/p>\n
\n 20 years of Market Art Fair.
For a fifth
\n consecutive year, BMW partners with Market Art Fair (24\u201326 April) in
\n Stockholm, the leading fair for contemporary art in the Nordic region.
\n Through its involvement in the fair, BMW continues to connect
\n mobility, innovation, and artistic expression, a tradition that has
\n been a central part of BMW\u2019s global cultural engagement for more than
\n 50 years.<\/p>\n
As part of the BMW Art Car World Tour, the latest addition to the BMW
\n Art Car Collection by Julie Mehretu (BMW Ar Car #20)
\n will be exhibited on the ground. She first presented her artistically
\n designed BMW M Hybrid V8 to the public at the Centre
\n Pompidou in Paris in May 2024. After its race deployment in Le Mans a
\n month later, last year and this year mark the next chapter of the
\n project in cooperation with the BMW Group: the African Film and Media
\n Arts Collective (AFMAC). Cape Town hosts the project\u2019s culmination:
\n the exhibition \u201cScaling Intentions\u201d at the Zeitz Museum of
\n Contemporary Art Africa, from 11 December 2026 \u2013 15 August 2027.<\/p>\n
For the fourth year, a winning artwork has been selected to decorate
\n the BMW models transporting visitors to and from the Market Art Fair
\n in Stockholm, including the all-new BMW iX3, Neue Klasse, as well as
\n the BMW i7 and BMW X5. This year\u2019s winners, Inka &
\n Niclas, an internationally renowned artist duo consisting of
\n Inka Linderg\u00e5rd and Niclas Holmstr\u00f6m from Sweden, will bring a new
\n visual language to the streets of Stockholm, as they apply their
\n distinctive sculptural-photographic practice to BMW\u2019s shuttle fleet.
\n The duo has been selected by an international jury.<\/p>\n
“The selection of Inka & Niclas as the 2026 winners of the
\n BMW Art Car Commission feels like a perfect fit. As Nordic artists
\n with an international presence, they embody the essence of Market Art
\n Fair. For the first time in our project\u2019s four-year history, artists
\n working with a photographic medium have been chosen, highlighting new
\n possibilities at the intersection of technology and creativity”,
\n says Sara Berner Bengtsson, Director Market Art Fair.<\/p>\n
\n BMW Art Talks and Highlights. Panelists: Anca Poterasu (Anca Poterasu gallery), Ovidiu \u0218andor Romania’s first-ever BMW Art Car presentation Market Art Fair (April 24\u201326) Panelists: Sara Berner Bengtsson (Market Art Fair Director), Azu Artist duo Inka & Niclas’s sculptural photographic practice \n Denmark’s Parallel Celebration. \n BMW Art Car World Tour. Highlights of the tour include Art Basel Hong Kong, Art Dubai, Auto The BMW Art Car World Tour will culminate in its largest exhibition The BMW Group’s Cultural Engagement, with exclusive updates and
RAD Art Fair
\n (23\u201326 April)
Art Talk:\u00a0“Building
\n Local Scenes Within Global Context”<\/a>
24 April, 5:00pm
\n RAD Pavilion<\/p>\n
\n (founder of Art Encounters), and Thomas Girst (Global Head of BMW
\n Group Cultural Engagement), moderated by Catinca Tabacaru<\/p>\n
\n BMW Lounge featuring curated miniature collection spanning five decades
\n BMW PhotoCamp book launch and photographer meet-and-greet<\/p>\n
Art Talk: “The
\n Future of the Art World. Where Do We Go from Here?”<\/a>
25
\n April, 1:30pm\u20132:30pm, Pavilion<\/p>\n
\n Nwagbogu (Founder, African Artists’ Foundation & Lagos Photo
\n Festival), and Thomas Girst (BMW Group Global Head of Cultural Engagement)<\/p>\n
\n applied to BMW shuttle fleet
\n Six podcast episodes recorded inside the art-designed BMW iX3 in
\n collaboration with The Art Bystander
\n Julie Mehretu’s BMW M Hybrid V8 Art Car on display<\/p>\n
Running
\n concurrently through 21 June, Northern
\n Europe’s largest BMW Art Car exhibition at Classic Car House in
\n Denmark<\/a> showcases eleven iconic Art Cars and original artist
\n models. This ongoing presentation complements the Stockholm and
\n Bucharest stops, demonstrating the tour’s unprecedented scale and its
\n ability to create simultaneous cultural dialogues across multiple
\n European venues.<\/p>\n
The BMW Art Car World
\n Tour, which kicked off in March 2025 and continues through August
\n 2026, celebrates the 50th anniversary of the renowned BMW Art Car
\n Collection with an extraordinary journey across flagship art fairs,
\n museums, motorsport events, and cultural institutions worldwide.
\n Featuring more than 55 stops in over 30 countries, the tour has
\n captivated more than two million visitors with its iconic collection
\n of 20 BMW Art Cars, each a unique masterpiece created by some of the
\n world\u2019s most renowned artists.<\/p>\n
\n Shanghai, the Concorso d\u2019Eleganza Villa d\u2019Este, Ultrace in Poland, the
\n 24 Hours of Le Mans and Le Mans Classic, the Louwman Museum in The
\n Hague, Pebble Beach Concours d\u2019Elegance and The Bridge in the USA, the
\n Goodwood Revival, Contemporary Istanbul, Zoute Grand Prix in Belgium,
\n Frieze London, Market Art Fair and The Aurora in Sweden, as well as
\n Retromobile in Paris.<\/p>\n
\n to date at BMW Welt in Munich from 29 July\u201331 August 2026.<\/p>\n
\n deeper\u00a0insights into its global initiatives can be followed on
\n Instagram at @BMWGroupCulture<\/a>.<\/p>\n